“There is a way to definitely recognize it.”
Both Nam Yong-seok from the [Demon Servant Association] and Joo Ye-seul from the hidden dungeon were confirmed villains who activated [Mimicry].
So, if Cha Jin-hyuk is indeed a villain, then his ability should be detectable.
But one must always consider the possibilities.
What if he doesn’t get identified as a villain?
“That possibility isn’t entirely absent.”
Nam Yong-seok and Joo Ye-seul, along with the other little nuisances, were all humans who had already committed bad deeds.
I don’t know what kind of person Cha Jin-hyuk is now, but it was before he was called the ‘Mad Judge.’
So much has changed from the world I remembered, but it wasn’t to the extent of dragging the events of a few years into the present.
And if we intervene in the future, branching out in countless ways as Yeon-hee said…
“The future could change. No, it’s highly likely to change.”
Whether destiny flips and Cha Jin-hyuk turns into a hero, or even if he lives just as an ordinary hunter,
What would happen then?
“I might save the lives of the hunters killed by Cha Jin-hyuk, lives that are greater than the deeds he’s done.”
And.
“Conversely, the real villains Cha Jin-hyuk killed might survive…”
I can recall a few villains, but I can’t remember them all, which is problematic.
How did Cha Jin-hyuk manage to find so many villains? Has he awakened a power similar to my mimicry ability?
As I was lost in thought.
“Wow—Ran. Look at that! Are there trees like that in your world?”
(Not exactly, but we do have many beautiful trees! They’re so huge it’s a problem!)
Yeon-hee and Ran were still excitedly chattering. Watching them, my complicated mind felt slightly relieved.
“This isn’t a problem that can be solved by my worrying. Let’s just confront it.”
Complicated problems often have solutions that suddenly appear when you gradually clear away the outer issues instead of thinking about it seriously.
We decided to get off the train and head straight to a dungeon where Cha Jin-hyuk was said to be active.
Once we arrived at the “Lukrakota’s Dungeon,” the lowest of the B-rank dungeons, we looked around like tourists at a ruin.
“Wow… B-rank dungeons have huge gates.”
Nodding—
The gate was gigantic, reminding me of the entrance of the D-rank dungeon’s wolf den.
“When will I get to go in here?”
If I speed up my growth rate, it shouldn’t be long into the future.
“You said that man has a hunchback?”
“Clap, Clap, Clap.”
Despite his name sounding fine, Cha Jin-hyuk was a man with a hunchback disability that people commonly referred to as a hunchback.
Before his awakening, his disability was quite severe, but he must have improved a lot now.
“I’ve heard the Lukrakota dungeon has a short length, so it’s quick to clear, let’s wait a bit.”
Nodding—
Since we didn’t know when Cha Jin-hyuk would come out, we quickly had lunch at a nearby restaurant and then returned.
We decided to wait in a café that was conveniently close to the dungeon.
This café was surely operated by the association.
We spent our time looking at the local dungeon and monster information on our phones.
“The highest-ranking place in this area is the ‘Tarantula Kingdom.’ It’s an upper-tier B-rank… Huh- this isn’t even the top dungeon.”
Yeon-hee searched for what the monster ‘Tarantula’ looked like and grimaced.
“Eew… it’s really ugly. They say it has a face that looks like a lizard mixed with a spider. Ugh…”
Seeing her scrunch her pretty face like that amused me greatly.
Hours that felt like a sweet date flew by.
“Heh… Il-wol, over there.”
Nodding—
Only after Yeon-hee finished her fourth cup of coffee did we see a hunchbacked man exiting the gate.
His eyes were sunken, and his forehead protruded abnormally, creating a natural shadow that made him look like he had gone through something terrible.
Coincidentally, the group of six, including him, began heading straight for our café. Well, there’s nowhere else to go.
“Um… what should we do?”
I grabbed the flustered Yeon-hee’s hand to reassure her not to worry.
For now, it was a party without a sorcerer.
“The likelihood that a guide is a sense ability user is low.”
They wouldn’t be able to detect me, sitting still in stealth mode.
Yeon-hee pulled her hood low and brushed her hair aside, revealing just her ear.
– What should we drink?
– Ah, let’s just grab whatever.
They comfortably found their seats as they entered the café, and Cha Jin-hyuk immediately began taking orders from his companions.
With a nonchalant air, they sat cross-legged at the table and called out their menu items while Cha Jin-hyuk went to the counter, ordered six items, and even paid.
“So there are a lot of comments calling Cha Jin-hyuk a pushover. I guess it makes sense.”
He wasn’t expressionless like when he exited the gate, but instead wore a silly smile as if something good had happened.
I hadn’t even seen him for a full minute, but it was obvious he had a vibe that made him an easy target for a scam.
Cha Jin-hyuk received the call bell and asked his companions for permission before hurrying to the bathroom.
The hunters, who had been quietly watching his back, began to murmur after he went upstairs to the second-floor bathroom.
– The toad has crazy skills, but to be honest…
They seem to be calling Cha Jin-hyuk a ‘toad.’
– What do you mean?
– You know, I’m just expressing my honest opinion here, but when that toad comes near, doesn’t he have a slight smell?
– What? Hahaha—!
– Yeah, I honestly feel that way too.
– Right? You know that diaper smell from babies?
Out of the five hunters, three were women.
One of them crinkled her face in disgust, waving her hand as if she could still smell it.
– Oh, it’s a poop joke right after we left the gate. So disgusting. And keep your mouth shut. We have to milk him for now. We went through a lot to bring him in.
– To be fair, it’s really convenient. Just stomp on the guys who fell over, and it’s done.
– I can agree with that. It’s super convenient.
– But doesn’t that mean we don’t need to eat that? Maybe we should delay a bit.
– That’s something we should consider further. It wasn’t a bad condition.
– That stone, it’s confirmed, right? Any side effects?
– Everyone shut your mouths. Are you insane?
– Ahem…
The man, who seemed to be the leader, quickly changed his expression to that of a nasty jerk and silenced the others.
The keyword that made him react sensitively was probably…
‘… stone? These bastards can’t be serious.’
I focused my senses, feeling an urge to check if they had any scent from the Blue-eyed or any other collective of evil.
But the presence of a guide who was listening to the discussion restrained my instincts.
“I don’t know which of the five senses is enhanced, but their aura is quite sharp. They have decent skills.”
One of the two men had a strong aura compared to Cha Jin-hyuk, aside from him.
With the faint concentration of waves I spread out, I shouldn’t be noticed, but if they used their senses with intent, they would definitely catch on.
‘Okay. I’ve memorized the magic circuit.’
I’ll remember the suspicious “stone” story, but what they said about Cha Jin-hyuk irritated me.
Maybe it’s because he isn’t a villain yet, but this thought came to mind.
‘After hopping onto Cha Jin-hyuk’s back like that, they can’t beat him by any other means, so they have to pick on his appearance.’
It seemed too despicable, making me irritated.
As I listened to Cha Jin-hyuk’s party talk, a bitter smile emerged involuntarily. My anger probably stemmed from my appearance being ugly too.
Their cheap gossip continued until Cha Jin-hyuk came out of the bathroom.
(What if he hears all this inside the bathroom?)
Yeon-hee was anxious, wondering if Cha Jin-hyuk heard any of the backstabbing remarks.
I reassured her that he probably wouldn’t.
“Yeon-hee… we’re here to kill him, you know…”
Despite my belief that something was off, their constant chatter kept itching at my ears.
– You know it’s easy when hunting. But doesn’t that toad’s gaze feel a bit shady?
– I feel uneasy too. Sometimes I feel like he’s looking at my leg, it creeps me out.
– Really? I’ll call him later and tell him to watch it.
– Hey, to be honest, with that appearance, what do you expect? Just looking at him feels like sexual harassment. That can’t be fixed with an elixir.
– Hahaha—oh man, that’s harsh.
– Seriously. Who started this? Act like you’re innocent.
“Whew…”
“…”
Yeon-hee’s expression was hardening as she listened to their conversation.
I wasn’t ignoring the cold feeling settling in my heart.
Then Cha Jin-hyuk came out of the bathroom, holding a tray with six cups of coffee.
I saw one girl shielding her nose with her hand as she laughed with the one next to her.
‘……’
Some of them were overtly rubbing the cups that Cha Jin-hyuk had brought with tissues.
‘Hmm…’
I was angrier at those jerks than Cha Jin-hyuk now.
‘What kind of idiot is partying with such people? He has good abilities too.’
At that moment, Cha Jin-hyuk smiled brightly and finally spoke up.
“Hehehe… Thanks for your hard work today, everyone.”
Cha Jin-hyuk handed coffee to his companions with a bright smile.
His voice was a low tone that, together with his shadowy appearance, created a gloomy atmosphere.
“Eh? Ahh… uh, Jin-hyuk, thanks too.”
“Ah, it’s just a thing I do daily at the dungeon. No need to make a big deal out of it. Let’s eat quickly.”
“What I mean is, we’re not clearing a boss battle every day, you know. Coffee, it’s just coffee.”
“Hehe… still… We’ve been in a party for a week, so I thought I should at least treat you to a cup of coffee…”
‘…… what a joke. He’s truly a pushover.’
I wasn’t the only one boiling inside. Yeon-hee was gripping the lime toy fiercely.
(Tick tick tick—)
After a week of hard work with his companions, just a cup of tea.
He didn’t seem like he could enjoy it fully either.
I had a bad premonition that something serious was going to mess up my plans.
‘The moment I heard Yeon-hee’s comment, I felt something was off.’
I looked back at Yeon-hee.
She was still struggling to get a grip on her emotions, her lips quivering.
‘Hmm…’
And ten minutes passed.
They really just drank coffee and then left the café.
To be precise, five of them left together, leaving only Cha Jin-hyuk behind.
After gathering the empty cups, Cha Jin-hyuk ordered another cup before moving to a corner seat.
“Ahh… Thank you for today…”
‘……’
Cha Jin-hyuk closed his eyes and put his hands together, praying.
Now that the Christian prayers have become very challenging to maintain, his appearance seemed so sacred that I found myself staring at him blankly.
“Hey, you! Instead of that, hurry up and do something bad!”
If only he would do that, I could cleanly eliminate him and leave.
‘Of course, there’s no guarantee I’ll win 100%.’
Honestly, I hadn’t even planned on confirming him directly doing anything wrong, but now I felt like I couldn’t convince Yeon-hee without seeing that kind of scene.
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